Most people do not know the important questions to ask, or what to look for in the replies of an insurance agent, to know if an agent is deserving of your business. This blog post will give you tips on what questions to ask, and how to ask them. so you are able to see through empty claims of great customer service & expertise.

If you have visited the “about us” section of almost any insurance agency web site, you read the same things: Our customers are the focus of our business. We are committed to personal service. We work hard to get you the coverage you need at a low price, etc. The truth is anybody can claim to provide a high level or personal customer service, and just about everyone claims to provide it.

Maybe you have heard these claims of excellence from insurance agents before, only to find out you were not in good hands, they were not on your side, and they weren’t there, like a good neighbor.

Perhaps you insured with Farmers, and found out theirs is the only insurance company slogan close to being true: We are Farmers. (My agent is a) bum, bu-dumb, bum, bum, bum. bum. Or, you got a piece of the rock from Prudential, but you think your agent hit you in the head with it, tied you to it, then threw you and the rock into the river.

Okay, I’m making a few jokes. I’m not singling out these companies for poor service. There are great, good, mediocre, and downright awful agents representing all companies, including independent agents. The point I’m trying to make is you need to dig deeper than an insurance company’s advertising slogan, and the assurances you are told by an agent, to find a really good agent and avoid bad agents.

How do you find the best agents? By knowing the right questions to ask.

If you speak to an agent, after shopping first with all the leading companies to find the best prices and coverage, and ask the agent why you should choose them as your agent, you may take the agent by surprise, since almost no one asks this question. The agent is likely to fall back on the same old spiel of experience, honesty, integrity, and “putting the customer first.”

Politely tell the agent it’s important for you to choose the best agent (or agency staff person handling your account, which will most likely be the person to whom you are talking) and you would like to ask a few questions about their experience.

You are most likely going to be putting the agent on the spot, since no one asks these questions (But everyone should!), so tell the agent it’s okay if the agent prefers to think about the questions, and call you back with the answers.

Here are some questions to ask:

1. Tell me a specific situation when you were able to fix a problem for a customer?

Be sure the agent gives you one or two specific examples and how long ago it occurred. A year never went by where I did not at least once go above & beyond to fix a situation for a customer, so if the agent is telling you about something the agent did 6 years ago, you might wonder what the agent has been doing for customers in the mean time.

An example of an acceptable response would be something like: Six months ago I had a customer notified by the insurance company their home insurance would be canceled due to the condition of the home’s roof. The customer was unable to get the roof repaired before the cancel date, but will replace the roof the following Summer. I was able to negotiate with the insurance company to not cancel the home insurance, as long as the roof is replaced in the Summer.

Any agent is going to try to keep a policy, so they can keep their commission. Sometimes it’s as easy as the agent making one phone call to the insurance company’s underwriting department, without much skill needed from the agent.

What makes the example I used above as a sign of a good agent, is it shows the negotiating skills of the agent, and the flexibility of the insurance company, to agree to having the roof repair after the intended cancel date. Usually, insurance companies require the repairs to be done prior to the cancel date, with proof received of the acceptable completion of the repairs, before the company will reinstate the policy.

2. What will you do for me if I have a claim? Tell me about a specific situation where you helped a customer having a problem with a claim?

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Most agents will tell you their process for handling claims. Many agents do not get involved directly when you have a claim. This is not a problem. Your insurance company has claims representatives trained specifically to settle your claim. It’s usually best for the customer to work to settle the claim with the claims representative, after you discuss the situation with your agent, to see if you should file the claim.

If you ask your agent a specific question about the claim, the agent’s answer might be different than the claims representative, when only the claims representative’s answer matters.

For example, your agent may say you are covered when you rear ended another car last night. The claims representative will say you are not covered, when they investigate the claim, and find out you intentionally rear ended the other car due to road rage. You won’t be covered because of what your agent told you, but had the agent told you the claim needs to be properly investigated by the claims representative, the agent would not frustrate you by setting a false expectation.

A good agent may not handle claims for you, but all good agents will want you to contact them before filing any claims. Your agent will want to tell you about the higher rates, loss of discounts, and possible risk of cancellation, before you file a small claim with the company for a stolen laptop computer, or knocking down your neighbor’s mail box accidentally with your car.

If a prospective agent tells you they don’t get involved in claims, and you will need to call a 24 hour toll free number if you need to discuss or file a claim, you know when it comes to claims, you might as well not have an agent.

Agents should not interfere or get involved with the settling of claims, but the more of a role the agent plays in the claims process the better it is for you. Some insurance companies want their agents to take the initial claims report. Independent agents sometimes employ staff to specialize in helping their customers with claims.

Regardless of the level of an agent’s involvement with claims, a good agent should be there to help you if you have a problem with a claim.

For example, if you are not hearing back from your claims adjuster, the agent should find out why you are not being reached, and what is going on.

Have any potential agent tell you about one or two specific situations where they fixed a claims problem for a customer.

3. If an agent claims to put their clients first, ask for a specific example of when the agent put their client’s interests over their own.

The obvious example is staying late, beyond normal office hours, to meet or talk with a client needing assistance. This is something you should expect from any agent, though it’s unreasonable to think they should be available 24/7, or in the middle of the night.

A better example of putting the customer first, is an agent passing on a commission to give you the best insurance advice.

For example, you insure a rental property with a replacement cost option, and the agent quoting you cannot offer you a replacement cost policy. An agent truly putting you first, will explain you may be better off staying with the company offering replacement cost.

Don’t expect agents to violate their customers confidentiality, but they should be able to explain specific situations showing the excellent service they claim to provide. Requesting specific examples where the agent provided great service should help you cut through the BS some agents give you.

A good agent won’t mind answering a few of these questions. I would be wary of any agents unwilling to answer them. Another quality of a good agent is someone patient and willing to fully answer your questions. An agent impatient to answer these questions may be giving you the only answer you need to know about their customer service.

Have you asked your insurance agent questions about their customer service? Do you need to ask? Tell me about it. Please leave a comment on my facebook page. Follow me on Twitter for important insurance consumer news and new blog entries at CarInsWatch.